Mork vs. The Necrotons, Part 1
Mork vs. The Necrotons, Part 1 wss the 11th episode from the second season of Mork & Mindy, also the 36th overall episode in the series. Co-written by Alan Eisenstock & Larry Mintz, the episode, directed by Howard Storm, premiered on ABC-TV on November 18, 1979. Synopsis Three voluptuous aliens from Necroton capture Mork and attempt to find out what information he's learned about Earth. Plot summary "Mork vs. the Necrotons" was originally a one hour broadcast intended to raise November ratings as well as body temperatures, serving only as the acknowledged low point of the show's unfortunate second season, its more sophisticated, less childlike Mork driving viewers away. Nelson's political rally is jeopardized when Mork gets an emergency call from Orson telling him that the Necrotons, the planet Ork's arch enemies, have arrived on Earth and are searching for him, also reporting that the Necrotons have come to earth to find out what Mork knows about his adopted planet, which they seek to conquer. It isn't long before Captain Nirvana and her cronies kidnap him and take him back to their ship to try to torture him. The Orkan way to avoid trouble being to hide, Mork does what he can by living inside Mindy's couch. Raquel Welch plays Necroton leader Captain Nirvana, whose intensive tortures involve tickling by feather and hickeys in the hot tub, courtesy guards Kama (Debra Jo Fondren, Playboy's 1978 Playmate of the Year) and Sutra (Vicki Frederick). Trivia *This originally aired as an hour-long episode. It was split into two parts for syndicated reruns. *Mork previously mentioned the Necrotons in "To Tell the Truth." *This episode marks one of the few times that Orson calls Mork. *After season 1, they dropped the entire supporting cast, switched nights and softened the stories to seem more family friendly. Ratings of the top-rated show immediately plummeted. ABC was gaining a reputation for "jigglevision," so Raquel Welch was brought in to amp the sex factor, which miffed the cast and crew. "There were a lot of little kids who went through puberty watching that episode," Robin Williams commented, "and I think we lost a lot of the audience."Pioneers of Television: Robin Williams Remembered *According to Howard Storm, "Raquel Welch was any director's nightmare."Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the Making of Mork & Mindy In addition to various other annoyances, she was so afraid of being upstaged by the other Necrotons that she suggested they wear dog masks and she drag them around on leashes. *Raquel Welch got under Pam Dawber's skin, so any time Dawber was standing behind her, she'd act as though she was punching Welch in the head to crack up the crew. *At the end of a take, Robin Williams refused to get out of the hot tub because he had an erection. *This episode was spoofed in the 2011 porn movie Mork & Mindy: A Dream Zone Parody. Trivia *This originally aired as an hour-long episode. It was split into two parts for syndicated reruns. *Mork previously mentioned the Necrotons in "To Tell the Truth." *This episode marks one of the few times that Orson calls Mork. *After season 1, they dropped the entire supporting cast, switched nights and softened the stories to seem more family friendly. Ratings of the top-rated show immediately plummeted. ABC was gaining a reputation for "jigglevision," so Raquel Welch was brought in to amp the sex factor, which miffed the cast and crew. "There were a lot of little kids who went through puberty watching that episode," Robin Williams commented, "and I think we lost a lot of the audience."Pioneers of Television: Robin Williams Remembered *According to Howard Storm, "Raquel Welch was any director's nightmare."Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the Making of Mork & Mindy In addition to various other annoyances, she was so afraid of being upstaged by the other Necrotons that she suggested they wear dog masks and she drag them around on leashes. *Raquel Welch got under Pam Dawber's skin, so any time Dawber was standing behind her, she'd act as though she was punching Welch in the head to crack up the crew. *At the end of a take, Robin Williams refused to get out of the hot tub because he had an erection. *This episode was spoofed in the 2011 porn movie Mork & Mindy: A Dream Zone Parody. Orkan Facts # Orkans and Necrotons have been enemies for millennia, yet prior to this episode, Orkans have no idea what Necrotons look like, paralleling a similar situation in the Star Trek season one episode Balance of Terror, in which the U.S.S. Enterprise crew has no idea what Romulans look like before encountering them in said episode # Upon learning Necrotons are coming to Earth, Orson straightforwardly advises Mork to hide; this is consistent with the fact that Orkans consider it humiliating to engage in battle and honorable to avoid violence at any cost, as revealed in the season one episode Mork's Greatest Hit. Cast & Crew Written by Alan Eisenstock & Larry Mintz Episode Cast Starring *Robin Williams as Mork *Pam Dawber as Mindy McConnell *Jay Thomas as Remo DaVinci *Gina Hecht as Jeannie DaVinci *Jim Staahl as Nelson Flavor *Ralph James as Voice of Orson *Tom Poston as Mr. Bickley (credited only) Guest starring *Raquel Welch as Captain Nirvana *Debra Jo Fondren as Kama *Vicki Frederick as Sutra Gallery Mork & Mindy vs The Necrotons.jpg Mork & Mindy Necrotons Raquel Welch Debra Jo Fondren Vicki Frederick.jpg Mork Vs the Necrotons 02 Raquel Welch Robin Williams.jpg References External links * * Category:Mork & Mindy Season 2 Category:Mork & Mindy episodes Category:Episodes